


The Ghost in Room 304

by tsuristyle



Category: SMAP
Genre: I know nothing about actual exorcism rituals, M/M, Past Relationships, and some yakuza, cups of intangible tea, meddling ghosts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-29
Updated: 2016-12-29
Packaged: 2018-09-13 03:45:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9105289
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tsuristyle/pseuds/tsuristyle
Summary: Shingo just wants to be a normal teacher, but with a ghostly roommate, an exorcist ex-boyfriend, a mysterious co-worker, and some misbehaving students, life is anythingbutnormal.(If Kasuka na Kanojo took place after Boku no Ikiru Michi, and starred SMAP. Warning for some members being ghosts, and a scene with a bit of blood. Written November 2014.)





	1. Chapter 1

Katori Shingo was a teacher. At least, he was trying to be one, he had a shelf full of motivational books and a resume full of excellent educational background, and really all he wanted was a quiet life of writing lectures and grading essays, perhaps over a nice cup of tea.  
  
Life, it seemed, had other ideas for him.  
  
"How was class today? Did Tanaka-san act up again?" his roommate asked, gliding across the room to poke his head, literally, through the refrigerator door. He emerged with the see-through remains of a chinese takeout box. "He always seemed so well-behaved when I was his teacher."  
  
Shingo stuck his feet under the kotatsu, resting his chin on his hands. "Are you saying I'm a bad teacher?"  
  
"Of course not!" His roommate picked at the leftovers with a pair of ghostly chopsticks. "I think something must have happened after... well, you know."  
  
Shingo knew quite well. The man standing in his kitchen, Kusanagi Tsuyoshi, had died two months ago, leaving his teaching position, his apartment, and, unfortunately, his spiritual remains behind for the next teacher to inherit. And thus Shingo-- unaspiring teacher but curiously sensitive to the occult-- had found himself with an unexpected roommate who most _certainly_ hadn't been mentioned in the hiring contract.  
  
"I wonder if it's his family," Tsuyoshi wondered aloud, chewing on a ghostly piece of chicken. "You should go pay them a visit sometime."  
  
"I'll do no such thing," Shingo replied, stretching his legs out. "And stop eating the spirits of my leftovers, it makes them taste funny."  
  
"It does _not_ ," Tsuyoshi contended, but he put the ghostly takeout box back in the fridge. "What do you mean, you won't do a home visit? It's part of the job."  
  
"The teacher's job is to teach." Shingo yawned and picked up one of his motivational books. "We've had this conversation before. I'm not going."  
  
Tsuyoshi sighed, shaking his head sadly, and drifted off into the empty bedroom.  
  
~  
  
Shingo had been able to see ghosts since he was twelve. It had been a rather unpleasant revelation at the beginning of his adolescence, and absolutely no help during the teenage years which followed-- talking to people no one else could see wasn't exactly a great way to make friends. The worst part, though, once he'd figured out how to deal with the unfriendly ones, was that most ghosts were just people trapped on this side for some reason or another, and they were really, really bored.  
  
After several years of being bombarded with the unending chatter of dozens of ghosts with nothing to do and nothing to talk about, Shingo finally started to pretend he couldn't see them at all. He had no interest in helping them resolve their unfinished business or whatever; he was twenty years old, and he wanted nothing more than peace and quiet and to never see another ghost again.  
  
Three years later, here he was, stuck in Room 304 with yet another case of unfinished business.  
  
Admittedly, Tsuyoshi was quite zen for a ghost; he'd known he was going to die a year beforehand, and had spent his last days tying up all the loose ends in his life. He'd said his goodbyes, and he'd been quite happy when he'd died. It was a mystery to Tsuyoshi himself what was still keeping him here.  
  
At any rate, aside from a little too much curiosity about how his students were faring, he wasn't too bad as a roommate. He puttered about within the boundaries of the apartment that confined him, watching television and somehow managing to read Shingo's books, and he was careful not to wake Shingo up at night, saying that it was bad for one's health not to get a full night's sleep.  
  
All in all, he was one of the best ghosts Shingo had ever met.  
  
~  
  
"Well, that's all for today. Ah, Katori-sensei?"  
  
Shingo looked up from his desk. The head teacher was preparing her papers to head home. "Yes?"  
  
"I saw from the attendance records that one of your students missed a few days of class recently. Was he in today?"  
  
"Tanaka Takahiro?" Shingo nodded, opening his attendance book. "He brought in a doctor's note today. Just a mild fever, nothing to worry about."  
  
"Good." The head teacher shouldered her bag, heading towards the door. "Still, I'd like you to keep a careful eye on him. A few instances of acting out can easily become only the tip of the iceberg, and we here at Yorin High do not take such things lightly."  
  
"Indeed." Shingo and the other remaining teacher, Kimura, stood and bowed to the departing head teacher. When she was gone, Kimura leaned across his desk. "I don't remember you mentioning a doctor's note."  
  
Shingo sat again. "It was a pretty obvious fake. But if that's the excuse Tanaka wants to make, then I'm not going to question it."  
  
Across from him, Kimura looked skeptical, but didn't challenge him. "The apartment working out okay? They were worried no one would want to take it."  
  
"Because of the previous occupant?" Kimura flinched slightly at Shingo's phrasing, and Shingo reminded himself Kimura didn't know said previous occupant was still hanging around. He waved his hand breezily. "No worries, I'm not sensitive to that kind of thing at all."  
  
Kimura smiled. "Well, if you need anything, just let me know. I'm on the second floor, room 204."  
  
~  
  
After work, Shingo got on his bike and pedaled thirty minutes across town to a tiny, obscure bar tucked in a back alley. While most bars, to Shingo, appeared to be twice as crowded and noisy as they should be, the owner of this bar had a curious fondness for religious objects of all kinds, and so the inside was decorated with altars, shrines, crosses, prayer beads, and holy figures of every denomination possible. It was, in short, the least ghost-friendly bar in existence. It also served a decent glass of beer.  
  
"You could just take the train, you know." A figure seated at the counter lifted his wineglass, swirling it around and taking a careful sip.  
  
"Not unless you're going to exorcise the whole line," Shingo replied, seating himself on the next stool over. "I prefer a more pleasant ride."  
  
The man-- Inagaki Goro, professional exorcist and consultant in all things occult-- nodded understandingly. Goro couldn't see or hear ghosts without a great deal of effort, but he knew the sensation of being surrounded by the dead. The bar had been his recommendation back when they'd first met.  
  
"So," Goro continued, setting his wine glass down. "Another ghost?"  
  
Shingo ordered a beer. "Stuck haunting his old apartment. Probably some kind of unfinished business, but he can't think of anything."  
  
"Cause of death?"  
  
"Stomach cancer." Shingo took a sip of the beer the bartender handed him. "Said all his goodbyes and everything, though. He just seems to be stuck there."  
  
Goro traced his finger idly around the rim of his wine glass. "No attachments left, hmm? Well, it's not always the ghost who's keeping them there."  
  
"Someone else?" Shingo raised an eyebrow. "What, like a grieving lover?"  
  
"Or anyone with strong enough emotion for them, yes." Goro lifted his glass again. "If he died recently, then it may indeed be the attachment of someone left behind holding him here."  
  
"Great." Shingo looked down into his glass. "I'm going to be stuck with a ghost for a roommate forever, then."  
  
"You _could_ try asking those who knew him," Goro replied. "Though I do know how much you hate spending time with people, alive or dead."  
  
Shingo rolled his eyes, taking a sip of beer. They'd dated briefly once, more out of convenience than anything else-- it was nice not having to explain a dozen strange habits and moments of odd distraction. Thankfully, though, it hadn't lasted.  
  
"The other option, of course, is for me to exorcise him by force. It depends on how strong the emotion involved is, though." Goro finished the last of his wine. "Too strong, and it would do more harm than good to break it."  
  
~  
  
Goro took his leave shortly after, with a promise to pay a visit later in the week, and upon peacefully finishing his beer Shingo got on his bike again and headed home.  
  
He was a little startled, however, to find Tsuyoshi had company.  
  
"Please don't tell me you're _also_ haunting this place." Shingo dropped his bag on a chair, glaring suspiciously at the new figure lounging on his bed.  
  
"Oh, he can see me?" The newcomer raised his eyebrows with interest. "He's not some kind of new age occult freak, is he?"  
  
Tsuyoshi reached over from the floor to swat his knee, or at least as well as a ghost could to another ghost. "Be polite, he's my host. Shingo, this is Nakai Masahiro. He came to visit me after I died."  
  
"Great. He's not staying." Shingo went into the kitchen, opening the fridge to pull out the leftover Chinese takeout. "And no, I am _not_ an occult freak."  
  
"Why would I stay? I can go wherever I like." Nakai sat up, yawning. "It's the trapped ones that have it rough."  
  
"Nakai-kun is a wanderer," Tsuyoshi explained. "He won't say it, but he looks after other ghosts and keeps ones like me company."  
  
Nakai tugged the beanie he was wearing down slightly. "I was just passing by," he mumbled. "Anyway, you've got a host you can talk to, you don't need _my_ company."  
  
Shingo pulled out his chopsticks and picked at the Chinese food. "He doesn't need _any_ company, he needs a ticket to the next world." He wrinkled his nose. "I told you, this tastes funny now."  
  
"That's because you're eating it cold," Tsuyoshi protested, crossing his arms. "Anyway, did you talk to Tanaka-san today?"  
  
Shingo shook his head. "Had an appointment with a friend." He stuck the takeout in the microwave. "An exorcist, if you're curious."  
  
Nakai narrowed his eyes. "You'd better not."  
  
"Or what? It's _my_ apartment." Shingo shrugged. "He's coming by this week to take a look."  
  
Nakai stood, glaring at Shingo. "Don't you _dare_."  
  
"Why not?" Tsuyoshi looked up at him. "I don't want to be stuck here forever."  
  
"It's too dangerous." Nakai scowled. "There are worse things than being stuck _here_."  
  
The microwave chimed. Shingo pulled out the takeout, emerging from the kitchen. "I wouldn't know," he said testily, sitting down at the kotatsu. "What I do know is that I have a lot of grading to get done, so either give me some peace and quiet or leave before I drive you out."  
  
Nakai gave him one final glare, and turned on his heel to vanish through the wall.  
  
Tsuyoshi frowned. "You could've been a little nicer to him. I think he's just lonely, really."  
  
"Lonely or not, I have work to do." Shingo paused, his expression softening slightly. "Sorry. You know what it's like."  
  
Tsuyoshi nodded, mouth slipping back into a smile. "He'll probably be back again anyway." He stood. "Well, I'll let you work, then. But don't forget to talk to Tanaka-san tomorrow!"  
  
He passed through the wall into the bedroom, leaving Shingo to grade in peace.  
  
~  
  
There was a fuss outside Shingo's classroom as he approached-- two students appeared to be in the middle of an argument. It was one of the girls in his class-- Sasamoto Sayaka-- and, Shingo realized with a start, none other than Tanaka Takahiro.  
  
"Hey now, what's going on?" Shingo stepped up to the fray, doing his best to appear intimidating.  
  
Sasamoto crossed her arms. "He stole my pencil case."  
  
Tanaka scowled. "I gave it _back_."  
  
"Yeah, but you took something out of it!" One of Sasamoto's friends chimed in. "Give it back!"  
  
Tanaka lifted his chin defiantly. "Give _what_ back?"  
  
Shingo looked between them. "What did he take?"  
  
Sasamoto suddenly looked reluctant. "Nothing," she muttered.  
  
If anything, Tanaka's scowl got even deeper. "Suit yourself."  
  
Shingo rubbed his temples. "Let's talk about this after class. Both of you, report to the teacher's office after last bell."  
  
By the time the two students slunk into the office, Sasamoto had changed her story altogether. "He didn't steal it, I just thought he did 'cause I dropped it and he picked it up."  
  
Shingo frowned. "But one of your friends insisted that something had been stolen. Tanaka-san, is this story true?"  
  
Tanaka stared down at the floor, sullen. "Sure."  
  
Across the desks, Kimura glanced up, but didn't comment. Shingo sighed. "If that's the case, then that will be all. You may go." He was about to turn back to his desk when Tsuyoshi's words drifted through his head. "Ah, Tanaka-san, a moment please."  
  
Sasamoto flounced out of the office, looking pleased with herself. Tanaka scowled again. "What?"  
  
"Was that story really true?"  
  
Tanaka glanced up at him, then shrugged carelessly. "Sure, why not?"  
  
Shingo sighed. "If you say so. Just keep in mind that what you say is true becomes true."  
  
"Becomes true?" Tanaka stared at him for a second. Then he scowled again. "Whatever. It doesn't matter what I say, anyway."  
  
Shingo frowned. "Of course it matters what you say. If there's anything you want to tell me, I'll listen."  
  
Tanaka hesitated, glancing at Kimura suspiciously. Then, with a sudden motion, he shoved his hand in his pocket and pulled something thin and white out. He tossed it at Shingo, and ran out of the room.  
  
Shingo looked down at the object he'd caught. It was a cigarette.  
  
Kimura peered over. "So that means..."  
  
"He _did_ steal something," Shingo finished. "That explains why Sasamoto didn't want to bring it up."  
  
"Then why'd he give it to you?" Kimura raised an eyebrow. "Doesn't it just get them both in trouble?"  
  
Shingo closed his hand around the cigarette. "Maybe."  
  
Kimura's other eyebrow joined the first.  
  
"After all, he didn't actually _say_ he stole it from her." Shingo turned back to his desk, facing Kimura. "As far as we know, he could have simply found the cigarette somewhere and turned it in." He pocketed the cigarette and picked up his pen again.  
  
"So you're just going to leave it at that." Kimura shook his head. "You definitely do things differently from him."  
  
Shingo glanced up. "Him?"  
  
Kimura's eyes dropped to the desk Shingo was sitting at. _Oh_. It struck Shingo that Kimura must have sat across from Tsuyoshi for years, probably from Tsuyoshi's first day right up to his last. Had they been close?  
  
"Sorry," Kimura said after a second. "I don't mean to compare you to him. Gotta be hard enough without having to live up to your predecessor."  
  
Shingo smiled wryly. "It's fine. I'm sure I'll get plenty of good advice."  
  
~  
  
"--and the _first_ thing you should have done was run after him! How are you going to get him to talk to you if you let him run away like that?"  
  
Shingo rubbed his temples, leaning on the kotatsu. "I told you, I don't do things like that."  
  
If Tsuyoshi could have flushed with anger, he would have. "A cigarette, Shingo! And stealing between students! These are serious issues!" He drifted closer. "You have to talk to them."  
  
"There's no proof--"  
  
"You're not a _lawyer_ ," Tsuyoshi stood in front of the kotatsu, arms crossed. "You're a teacher! Didn't you say your job is to _teach_ them?"  
  
Shingo sat back, mirroring Tsuyoshi's pose. "It's not that easy when you have a future to worry about."  
  
He realized, a second too late, how this would sound to Tsuyoshi.  
  
The other man glared at him, holding his elbows tightly. The air around him started to crackle, loose objects trembling as if in a sudden gust of wind. The television began to switch on and off, volume fluctuating wildly, then the stereo, the phone, the microwave, even the lights overhead in a cacophany of chaotic noise and light.  
  
"I'm sorry! I didn't mean it that way!" Shingo leaped up, trying to reach for Tsuyoshi. His fingers simply passed through the ghost's arm. "Okay, okay, I'll talk to them! I promise, so please just stop!"  
  
Everything turned off at once. For a moment, the apartment was completely dark and silent. Then, footsteps came running down the hallway, and someone pounded on his door.  
  
Shingo threw on a light and hurried over to answer. It was Kimura, dressed in a t-shirt and sweatpants, his hair up in a loose ponytail. "What was _that_? You okay?"  
  
"Oh, sorry, I just, um, mixed up the buttons on my remote." Shingo scratched his head apologetically. "Sorry if I startled you."  
  
Kimura glanced past him into the apartment. "Just thought I'd check." He flashed Shingo a smile, though his eyes still looked thoughtful. "If you ever _do_ have any trouble, just let me know."  
  
"Thanks." Shingo waved him off, and glanced back as soon as the older man was down the hall. Tsuyoshi was nowhere to be seen.  
  
~  
  
Shingo caught up with Tanaka in the hall after class. "Actions don't always speak louder than words, you know. Another teacher might have easily have thought it was your own."  
  
Tanaka paled. "I wouldn't-- it was just--"  
  
"I know what you meant." Shingo fell into step alongside him. "But I'd appreciate it if you told me directly."  
  
Tanaka looked down at his feet. "She shouldn't be smoking. I mean, those things give you cancer, right?" He frowned. "Why would she wanna go like _that_?"  
  
Like _that_. Shingo pictured Tsuyoshi's too-thin body and gaunt face, barely framed by the hair he'd grown out long. He must have seemed to be wasting away before the students' eyes, in those last few months. "So you took it to get her to stop?"  
  
"Like she'd listen to _me_." Tanaka shook his head. "So _you'd_ get her to stop."  
  
"I see." Shingo nodded agreeably, wondering how he was going to manage that. "Thank you for telling me the truth."  
  
Tanaka looked down again, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Am I gonna get in trouble?"  
  
"Not for this, no." Shingo took a breath. "But there is the matter of your recent absences from class, and the doctor's note that you gave me."  
  
Tanaka's expression shuttered abruptly. "I was sick."  
  
"I'll need a real doctor's note, then." Shingo watched him out of the corner of his eye. "My only other alternative is to speak with your parents to confirm that you were there."  
  
Tanaka stopped walking. "You mean a home visit?" His face darkened.  
  
"I may have no other choice," Shingo pointed out. "Unless you can tell me what it was you were doing instead."  
  
Tanaka glared at him. "None of your business," he said coldly.  
  
Shingo frowned. "Then I will have to call your parents and arrange--"  
  
"Make your stupid house call!" Tanaka shouted. "I don't care! They'll just tell you what you want to hear!" He shoved past Shingo and raced down the hall towards the shoe lockers.  
  
"Oof! Hey, no running in the halls!" Kimura caught himself on the lockers as Tanaka pushed past him.  
  
"You don't care about what's true at all!" Tanaka was out the doors before either of them could stop him.  
  
Kimura stared after him. "What was _that_ about?"  
  
Shingo sighed. "Looks like I'm gonna have to make a home visit after all."  
  
~  
  
"Good! Well, not the shouting and running off part. But a visit will do you both a lot of good." Tsuyoshi nodded emphatically, sipping a ghostly cup of tea. Shingo wasn't sure how he did that.  
  
"Let's hope his parents agree," Shingo muttered, sipping his own tea. "Speaking of home visits, why are _you_ here?" He glared at the wandering ghost who was once again lounging on his bed.  
  
"Protection," Nakai replied. "That exorcist is coming today, isn't he."  
  
As if on cue, the doorbell rang. Shingo buzzed Goro in, and a minute later the older man was toeing his shoes off in the entranceway.  
  
"Nice place," he said, looking around. "You didn't tell me you had _two_ ghosts, though."  
  
Nakai sat up warily. "He can see us?"  
  
"He can sense you. He's an exorcist, after all." Shingo turned back to Goro. "The other one came just to be annoying, it seems."  
  
"Interesting." Goro walked into the living room and seated himself on the cushion across from Tsuyoshi. Nakai watched him suspiciously. "So, you're the one trapped here?"  
  
Tsuyoshi glanced at Shingo, and Shingo remembered he was going to have to mediate, at least until Goro focused on seeing and hearing him. "Yeah, that's him."  
  
"Kusanagi Tsuyoshi. Died at age 26 of stomach cancer..." Goro glanced towards the empty bedroom. "Here in this apartment, was it?"  
  
Tsuyoshi nodded. Shingo had guessed as much, but it still made the hairs on his arms stand up slightly. "Seems so."  
  
Goro tilted his head. "It doesn't seem to be attachment to the apartment itself." He closed his eyes. "But I do sense a strong attachment of some sort."  
  
He trailed off, eyes still closed. Nakai narrowed his eyes, leaning closer. Shingo thought it was simply curiosity at first, but then Nakai moved suddenly, reaching for Goro's head.  
  
Before either Shingo or Tsuyoshi could say anything, Goro's hand snapped up and closed around Nakai's wrist.  
  
"Don't underestimate me." Goro opened his eyes, focusing on the air where Nakai was standing. "I may not be a natural like Shingo, but I _can_ see you if I wish to."  
  
Nakai stared at the hand around his wrist, frozen. Tsuyoshi and Shingo stared as well.  
  
Goro squinted as though a blurry picture was coming into focus. "Nakai Masahiro. A wanderer, are you? Maybe I should be exorcising _you_." He met Nakai's gaze sharply.  
  
Nakai widened his eyes and tried to pull his wrist away. "Don't you _dare_."  
  
Goro's grip didn't budge. "How did you die?"  
  
"Badly," Nakai answered flatly, still tugging his wrist. "Let me go."  
  
"No. Why are you still here?"  
  
"Dunno. Let _go_ of me."  
  
"Not until I can be sure you mean no harm." Goro tightened his grip. "Because if you do, I will not hesitate to break your connection to this world."  
  
Nakai glanced down at Goro's hand and stilled, his shoulders dropping. "You're just like all the rest after all."  
  
Shingo finally took a breath, stepping closer. "All the rest?"  
  
"You stick-wavers, pretending you know how everything works." Nakai curled his lip contemptuously. "Even when you _do_ have power, you don't give a damn about what happens to us."  
  
"Nakai-kun--" Tsuyoshi looked up at him, frowning.  
  
"Is that what you're afraid of?" Goro's expression softened slightly. "I have no intention of letting any spirit wander lost between worlds."  
  
He released Nakai's wrist, and Nakai vanished.  
  
"What did you do to him?" Tsuyoshi sat back, wide-eyed.  
  
Goro turned to him, eyes focusing. "Don't worry, he left on his own. Though I suspect he'll be back again before long." He smiled. "Shall we finish where we left off?"  
  
~  
  
Shingo stared at the family across from him. Tanaka was wedged uncomfortably between his parents on the couch, expression ranging somewhere between angry and bored. Around them, the room was immaculately spotless, from the plush white rug to the carefully polished vase of flowers on the glass coffee table; it reminded him vaguely of Goro's living room, in the way that he found it stifling after a while.  
  
"We're so glad you're looking after our son," Mrs. Tanaka said, refilling Shingo's tea cup daintily. "We have high hopes for him to go to a good college when he graduates, so your guidance will be of utmost importance."  
  
"I'm only a first-year," Tanaka mumbled.  
  
Mrs. Tanaka continued on. "We've done our best to teach him the manners he'll need, but I'm sure Katori-sensei will be in a much better position to train him properly."  
  
 _Train him?_ "Ah, yes, well," Shingo shifted nervously, clearing his throat. "His grades are certainly no problem, but I'm afraid there are a few issues I'd like to ask about."  
  
Mrs. Tanaka blinked innocently, trading glances with her husband. "Issues?"  
  
"Er," Shingo took a deep breath. "Well, first, there have been a few incidents of him acting out in class. Refusing to read aloud, talking during silent work sessions, that kind of thing."  
  
"Ah," Mrs. Tanaka laughed. "He must have been feeling unwell, he gets quite grumpy whenever he's catching something. Right, dear?"  
  
She looked, not at Tanaka, but over his head at her husband. Mr. Tanaka nodded emphatically. "Just a passing thing," he agreed.  
  
Between them, Tanaka wordlessly picked up his tea and took a sip.  
  
"I see," Shingo said. "That brings me to the second issue, which is his recent absence from three days of class."  
  
"Absence?" Mrs. Tanaka looked clearly surprised, but quickly recovered with a smile. "Oh, he must have been sick on those days. He does get sick much more easily lately."  
  
"I wasn't sick," Tanaka said suddenly, looking up. "I skipped school."  
  
"Will you need a doctor's note?" Mrs. Tanaka appeared not to have heard her son. "I'm afraid it wasn't serious enough for an appointment, but we can get one if necessary."  
  
"I _skipped school_ ," Tanaka said again, a little louder. "Because I felt like it."  
  
"I assure you he was sick," Mrs. Tanaka insisted. "He was here in bed the whole time." Mr. Tanaka nodded in agreement.  
  
"I, uh, I see." Shingo looked from Mrs. Tanaka's eager expression to her son's deepening scowl. "Uh, a doctor's note won't be necessary, then."  
  
"Oh, good." The Tanakas looked relieved. "Was there anything else you wished to ask about?"  
  
Shingo met Tanaka's gaze for a second, and shook his head, smiling. "No, that will be all. Thank you."  
  
~  
  
Shingo let out a long sigh as he climbed onto his bike. _Well, that was informative._  
  
Clearly Tanaka was rebelling against his situation. Shingo knew the feeling-- there had been a long period of selective deafness when Shingo had first told his parents he could see ghosts. It was frustrating when nothing you said seemed to reach them.  
  
But Shingo's parents had eventually come around, and the Tanakas did seem genuinely concerned for their son, as much as they pretended nothing was wrong. Maybe, with a little nudge in the right direction...  
  
Lost in thought, Shingo nearly crashed into a pedestrian as he turned onto his street.  
  
"I swear you've got it out for me," Kimura said, reaching out to steady Shingo's bike. "First you send a student flying into me, now it's you with this rackety bike of yours."  
  
"Ah!" Shingo stumbled off the bike, bowing in apology. "Sorry, I was just on my way back from that home visit."  
  
"With Tanaka?" Kimura started to walk; Shingo followed alongside him, pushing his bike by the handlebars. "How'd it go?"  
  
"He's the most perfect son ever, by their reckoning."  
  
Kimura grimaced. "Complete denial, then?"  
  
Shingo nodded. "And deaf to whatever their son says."  
  
"No wonder he seems so interested in what's true." Kimura helped Shingo steer the bike into the apartment courtyard. "If his own parents won't hear the truth from him, who will?"  
  
"Well, it's not my business to change that. I'm just a teacher, after all." Shingo locked his bike up and followed Kimura into the building. "Though I'm sure I'll never hear the end of it from _him_."  
  
Kimura glanced back curiously. "From who?"  
  
"Oh! Uh, just a teacher friend of mine." Shingo smiled winningly. "He's very passionate about teaching."  
  
Kimura gave him an odd look, but waved him off as they reached the staircase to the third floor. "I used to know someone like that, too." He smiled, though it looked a bit sad. "They usually give good advice."  
  
~  
  
It was the weekend. Normally, Shingo loved weekends, but that was before he had moved in with an opinionated and decidedly chattery ghost.  
  
"We've got to help him somehow." Tsuyoshi carefully peeled a tangerine from a transparent pile sitting on top of the kotatsu. Shingo was sure that had to be breaking some kind of metaphysical law. "We can't just let him deal with this on his own."  
  
"What do you mean, _we_? You're stuck here, don't forget." Shingo lounged on his bed, still in his pajamas. "I don't see why we can't just leave it up to him. Shouldn't he be the one to face his own problems?"  
  
"He needs to know he's not alone," Tsuyoshi replied, cradling the peeled fruit in his hands. "Everyone needs a little help sometimes, don't they?"  
  
"Maybe." It was true Shingo would've liked some help back when his own parents had been ignoring him. It had taken years for them to finally believe him.  
  
Tanaka couldn't afford years, though.  
  
Shingo sighed, rolling over. "Well, what do you propose I do, then?"  
  
Tsuyoshi brightened. "I have just the idea..."  
  
~  
  
Goro dipped his brush in ink, preparing to write the last character. Across from him, the subdued ghost waited, watching in anticipation of his final release.  
  
There was another ghost lurking in the corner of the room as well, but Goro had a feeling he could ignore that one for now.  
  
He cleared his mind and brought the brush down, feeling the spell gain shape as he drew the final stroke. Carefully setting the brush aside, he murmured the names of the characters and placed his hand in the center of the scroll. The spell flowed into him, channeling through his veins to the tips of his fingers and toes, and he swiftly reached out to touch his other hand to the ghost's forehead.  
  
The ghost bowed his head, seeming to dissolve into the still air. It wasn't over yet, though-- Goro closed his eyes and pushed away from the material world, following the ghost through the darkness. The path could be hard to find, if you didn't have a little help.  
  
Goro guided the ghost to the edge of the next world, as close as he dared to go. Sometimes they wanted to take him along with them; sometimes it was hard not to follow anyway. He pulled himself back, slowly, painstakingly making his way home to his own body.  
  
An hour had passed when he finally opened his eyes again. The ghost was gone.  
  
The _other_ ghost, however, was leaning over him in apparent curiosity.  
  
"I just came back from the spirit world. Are you really going to make me spend more energy on seeing you?" Goro rubbed his eyes, and then focused again.  
  
Nakai was indeed looking at him curiously. "So that's how you do it? No stick?"  
  
"That's for purification," Goro replied, pushing himself up. "Though it doesn't really need to be a stick, if you know what you're doing."  
  
Nakai watched him clean up the ink and scroll. "Most of them don't."  
  
Goro rolled the scroll up and tucked it away to burn later. "True. Most of them are just in it for the money."  
  
"And you're not?" Nakai eyed Goro's designer brand outfit and fastidiously styled hair.  
  
"I never said _that_ ," Goro corrected. "I simply like to do my job well, that's all."  
  
Nakai drifted after him out the door, arms folded. "Do you _really_ go into the spirit world?"  
  
"Why, are you curious? I could show you." Goro smirked as Nakai edged back from him warily. "It's not _that_ scary, you know. Do you really want to be stuck here forever?"  
  
Nakai hesitated. He drifted closer for a moment, close enough that Goro could make out a faint scar tracing across his throat. Then he narrowed his eyes, and shook his head. "I'd rather not find out." With one last parting glance at Goro, he stepped back and vanished into a shadow.  
  
Goro rubbed his throat thoughtfully, and pulled out his phone to look up recent obituaries.  
  
~  
  
"I am ninety-nine percent sure this is not what a good teacher does to help his students," Shingo muttered into his cell phone.  
  
"And I'm a hundred percent sure this isn't what a good exorcist does, either," Goro retorted from Shingo's living room. "Tsuyoshi says to hurry up."  
  
Shingo rounded the corner onto the street Tanaka's house was on. "Why can't I hear him over the phone, again?"  
  
"Ordinary microphones aren't sensitive to the metaphysical emanations that you perceive as his speech," Goro explained.  
  
"Um." Shingo glanced around to make sure no one was watching him.  
  
Goro sighed. "His voice isn't actually sound, so the phone can't pick it up."  
  
"Oh." Shingo ducked behind a parked car as the door to Tanaka's house opened. "Hang on-- it's him!"  
  
"Already? What kind of high schooler gets up at seven in the morning on a weekend?"  
  
"One who can't stand being at home," Shingo replied. That was different, at least-- Shingo had nearly become a shut-in, refusing to leave his room except to race blindly to school and back. "Looks like he's heading out."  
  
"Tsuyoshi says to follow him."  
  
"I know that!" Shingo peered around the car, waiting for Tanaka to turn the corner before sprinting down the sidewalk after him.  
  
He followed Tanaka through town to the shopping district, where it was thankfully easier to walk around on his phone inconspicuously. The manga cafe his student went to next was not quite so easy.  
  
"He's on the fifth volume of One Piece!" Shingo hissed, peeking around a bookcase. "Do you know how long that series is? We could be here for _days_!"  
  
"Sir?" An employee hovered nearby, attempting to hide her apparent concern. "Um, would you like to order something?"  
  
"Oh, yes, um--" Shingo quickly pretended to be browsing the shelf he'd been hiding behind with utmost interest. It was, of all places, the Boy's Love section. "I'll take a black coffee," he said, pulling a book off the shelf as nonchalantly as humanly possible and making a beeline for a chair out of sight.  
  
True to Shingo's guess, Tanaka spent the entire morning reading One Piece before finally getting up with a stretch and heading for the door. Shingo waited a few minutes before slipping out after him and calling Goro's cell phone again.  
  
"About time," Goro yawned. "Read any good books?"  
  
"Well, the first one was about a prince and his harem of male lovers. Right up your alley, I'm sure," Shingo replied, not mentioning that he'd surreptitiously gone back for the second volume. "Hang on, he's leaving the shopping district."  
  
Tanaka glanced at his watch and turned down a short side road lined with trees. Shingo watched with growing dismay as the high schooler headed straight for the entranceway at the end of the street-- it was the local temple, which meant it was also the local graveyard.  
  
"I am not going in there." Shingo stared up at the hillside behind the temple, his skin already starting to crawl.  
  
"In where? Wait, I've got you on the map-- oh." Goro paused; he wasn't fond of visiting graveyards, either. "Well, Tsuyoshi says his ashes are buried there, if it helps."  
  
"Great." It really, really didn't. "Y'know, I think I'll just wait here--"  
  
"What, you can talk to ghosts but you're spooked by a graveyard?"  
  
Shingo turned. It was Nakai.  
  
"I'd rather not have anything to do with either, if I could help it," Shingo replied. "What do you want?"  
  
Nakai folded his arms. "What do _you_ want? You're the one following a high schooler around."  
  
Shingo glanced around, hoping no one was watching. "He's my student. I'm looking out for him." Nakai raised an eyebrow at him. "Tsuyoshi wants me to find a way to talk to him."  
  
"He does?" Nakai's mouth pulled into a mischievous smirk. "Well, wouldn't want to disappoint him, then." He reached out and, before Shingo could react, _grabbed_ Shingo's wrist and pulled him onto the temple grounds.  
  
"Hey!" Shingo stumbled after him, his wrist burning with cold-- Nakai didn't even seem remotely bothered by the wards as he dragged Shingo past the temple towards the graveyard. "Let go or I swear, I'll have Goro exorcise you!"  
  
Nakai just laughed and pulled Shingo up the stairs, graves flying past as they climbed the hillside. A young girl was sitting on one of the gravestones near the path; Shingo caught her eye as they ran by and quickly looked away.  
  
They stopped near the top of the hillside. Tanaka was standing at a grave a little ways ahead, seemingly talking to someone Shingo couldn't see.  
  
Nakai released him. "And don't forget to pay your respects, too."  
  
"Respects?" Shingo looked over, but Nakai had vanished.  
  
Tanaka started, and turned around. "Sensei! What're you-- oh, I guess you'd come here, too." He took a step back, revealing the name carved into the stone: Kusanagi Tsuyoshi. "You here to talk to him, too?"  
  
Shingo glanced down at the phone forgotten in his hand, and ended the call. "Yes," he replied, stepping up the last few stairs to stand alongside his student. "Although I'm not sure if he'll be listening."  
  
"He will," Tanaka declared firmly. "He was the only one who would."  
  
Shingo nodded quietly. They stared at the stone in silence for a moment. It was small, but clean and polished, with a bouquet of flowers barely a day old still resting in one of the vases. There was no other name on the marker.  
  
"He told me I should talk to them. Back then, I mean." Tanaka looked down, scuffing the gravel. "But it's just gotten worse."  
  
Shingo crouched down in front of the stone, brushing a few stray petals away. "So you talk to him instead?"  
  
Tanaka frowned suspiciously. "What, is it weird or something?"  
  
"No," Shingo replied, looking up. "But at least you know when the living are listening."  
  
Tanaka stared at him for a long moment. Then he coughed and looked down at the gravel again, shifting from one foot to the other. "I'll-- I'll let you talk to him now," he said quickly, stepping towards the main path.  
  
Shingo turned to watch him go. "Tanaka?" he called after him.  
  
Tanaka glanced back. "Yeah?"  
  
Shingo gave him a lopsided grin. "Don't skip class anymore, okay?"  
  
Tanaka hesitated, and then tentatively returned a tiny smile. "Yes, sir."  
  
~  
  
Shingo turned back to the gravestone after Tanaka had gone. There wasn't much point in paying his respects when he saw Tsuyoshi day in and day out. Tsuyoshi wasn't even here to hear it, after all.  
  
Still... Shingo bent his head and murmured a few words to the small, polished stone.  
  
Then he stood, brushed off his slacks, and raced down the path as fast as he could. There were more now, lingering in boredom or curiosity or maybe hunger-- Shingo caught glimpses out of the corners of his eyes but he wasn't about to stick around to find out. The last thing he needed was for something to follow him, harmless or not--  
  
He turned the last corner and crashed into someone at the graveyard entrance.  
  
"Oof!" Kimura stumbled back against the gateway, dropping the bouquet he'd been carrying. "You--what're _you_ doing here?"  
  
"Sorry!" Shingo bowed hastily. "I was just, uh, paying respects to someone." He picked the fallen bouquet up, offering it. "Are you here to--"  
  
"None of your business," Kimura snapped, snatching the bouquet back. "Watch where you're going next time." Without a further word, he turned and headed up the stairs into the graveyard.  
  
Shingo watched him go, thinking of the spotlessly clean grave and the fresh flowers in Kimura's hand. It could be for someone else, he supposed. Or a different person might have visited the grave the day before.  
  
They were exactly the same kind of flowers, though.


	2. Chapter 2

Shingo was still in thought when someone grabbed him from behind, hugging him tightly. He yelped, turning to shove them off-- and realized it was Goro.  
  
"What the hell? Don't scare me like that!"  
  
Goro let go quickly, regaining his composure. "Don't _you_ scare me like that, you jerk." He glared at Shingo, brandishing his phone. "You hung up on me in the middle of a _graveyard_."  
  
Shingo glanced at his phone guiltity-- he had missed 10 calls. "Sorry. It was Nakai-- he _dragged_ me in-- and then Tanaka was there so I couldn't really stay on the phone..."  
  
"So you _did_ talk to him." Goro looked somewhat mollified. "Tsuyoshi will be happy to hear that."  
  
"How was Nakai even able to do that, though?" Shingo rubbed his wrist; it felt like it had been burned. "Maybe you really _should_ exorcise him."  
  
"It's not that easy." Goro fiddled with his phone for a moment, then showed Shingo a news article. _Unidentified man, age 25-35, found dead in alley of lacerations to the neck and chest,_ it read _. No identifying information was found on the body; police have released a sketch in hopes that an informant will come forward..._  
  
Shingo handed the phone back. "So no one ever came forward?"  
  
Goro shook his head. "And this was a couple years ago, meaning he was probably cremated but never got a funeral."  
  
Unidentified and unmourned, with no proper service... Shingo shivered. "No wonder he's unhappy."  
  
"But not dangerous, I think," Goro assured him. "Though he does seem to be a quick learner." He tucked his phone away and took Shingo's arm. "Anyways, enough about him, let's get you back to Tsuyoshi. I'm sure he must be pacing the room by now..."  
  
~  
  
If Tsuyoshi could have hugged him, he probably would have. He settled down quickly, though, and listened as Shingo related what had happened.  
  
"I wish I could have been there to listen," Tsuyoshi mused over a ghostly cup of tea he'd produced from somewhere. "But you're right, it's the living he needs to talk to, not the dead."  
  
Shingo sipped his own, non-ghostly tea. "Now if only his parents understood that. I can't exactly call them up and tell them to stop ignoring their son."  
  
Tsuyoshi smiled. "You _do_ care, don't you. Despite all those things you say about teaching."  
  
"Hey, I never said I didn't!" Shingo leaned back against his bed. "I just want a quiet, normal life, that's all."  
  
Tsuyoshi laughed. "Say what you like. We'll make a good teacher of you yet."  
  
"As long it doesn't involve chasing people into graveyards again." Shingo tilted his head back and stretched, yawning. "Speaking of, were you and Kimura-sensei close?"  
  
"Kimura-kun?" Tsuyoshi's smile faded a bit. "Why, was he there?"  
  
"With flowers and everything." Shingo peeked over. "I guess you guys did work together a long time."  
  
Tsuyoshi sipped his tea thoughtfully, expression clouded. Then he shook his head, smiling again. "I'm sure it's nothing. I told you, I settled everything before I died."  
  
"Just curious." Shingo filed the reaction away for later-- Tsuyoshi hadn't actually answered his question, but he'd had enough excitement for one day without possibly offending his ghostly roommate again.  
  
Also, he was really hungry. "Hey, wanna celebrate with some pizza?"  
  
~  
  
Tanaka was indeed in class the next day, if still somewhat sullen. Shingo made a point of calling on him to answer a question, and when Tanaka got it right he sat back down looking embarassed but pleased with himself.  
  
After classes, Shingo returned to the teachers' office to find Kimura already at his desk. "Hey," Kimura said, glancing up. "Sorry about yesterday, I wasn't really up for much talking then."  
  
Shingo smiled, setting his papers on his desk. "We were in a _graveyard_. I wasn't really eager to hang around and chat, either."  
  
Kimura shook his head. "I'll make it up to you. You free after this?"  
  
Shingo waved his hand. "You don't have to-- I mean, I nearly ran you over--"  
  
"My treat," Kimura insisted. "I know a good place nearby. You don't get out enough, anyway."  
  
The door swung open, and a few more teachers came in. Shingo nodded to them and quickly sat down, pulling out a pen to start grading. "You really don't have to," he whispered across the desks.  
  
"You'll thank me once you've tasted it," Kimura whispered back, a smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth.  
  
~  
  
"This is _amazing_ ," Shingo moaned, picking up another skewer of deliciously-marinated meat and vegetables. "How'd you find out about this place?"  
  
"Tsuyoshi told me," Kimura replied, finishing off his beer and beckoning for another. "I mean, Kusanagi-sensei. He heard I really liked this kind of food."  
  
Shingo-- already on his second glass-- took a long gulp and sighed in satisfaction. "You were friends?"  
  
"You could say that." Kimura accepted his beer and drained it nearly halfway before it reached the counter. "He used to be really shy, y'know. Could hardly even talk to his students."  
  
"Really? He doesn't seem-- uh, I mean, he didn't sound that way at all from what I've heard."  
  
Kimura leaned on his elbow. "Only having a year left changes you a lot, I guess. Used to be me chewing him out for poor teaching, but by the end it was the other way 'round."  
  
Shingo nodded agreeably, the beer starting to soak in. It seemed to be having the same effect on Kimura, too-- there was something looser about his expression, less guarded.  
  
"Couldn't even talk to _me_ back then," Kimura went on, staring at his beer distractedly. "Prob'ly chewed him out too much."  
  
"But then you got to know each other."  
  
"Yeah." Kimura smiled. It looked almost painful. "Yeah."  
  
They stumbled home afterwards, bumping into each other along the way. "Good thing you don't have your bike," Kimura laughed, steadying himself on Shingo's shoulder. "You'd've run me over by now."  
  
"Not _trying_ to," Shingo protested, weaving slightly under Kimura's sudden weight. "You're just always _there_."  
  
" _You're_ the one who's always there," Kimura replied, his hand tightening suddenly. "Not-- not--" He shook his head, as if trying to clear it. "Not your fault," he muttered, and gave Shingo's shoulder a friendly thump.  
  
They staggered up the apartment stairs, Kimura still leaning on Shingo's shoulder. At the second floor, Kimura stopped, staring up the dimly-lit staircase leading to the third floor. "Shingo," he said, his voice low. "D'you believe in ghosts?"  
  
Shingo swayed, reaching for the wall to steady himself. "Y'mean like in horror movies 'n stuff?"  
  
"No, like-- like real people." Kimura was still staring up into the darkness. "Sometimes I think I want to."  
  
Shingo glanced sideways at the older teacher. Could it be...  
  
"Pretty lonely for the ghost, if you ask me," he said, patting Kimura's shoulder. "Better off sticking with the living."  
  
Kimura watched him head up the stairs, seemingly deep in thought. It had to be, Shingo thought as he turned the corner-- but he had a feeling this wasn't going to be easy to fix, not with the way Kimura was acting...  
  
~  
  
"You think it's him?" Goro set his wine glass down on the bar, peering at the school yearbook Shingo had snuck out of the office. Kimura's picture stared sternly back up at them-- right next to Tsuyoshi, smiling sheepishly as if worried the older teacher would chew him out even in picture form. "Lucky you, getting to look at that every day. Looks a bit overly serious, though."  
  
"He's been leaving flowers on Tsuyoshi's grave every day," Shingo replied, taking a swig of beer. "And you should've seen his expression talking about him last night. Definitely him."  
  
"I see." Goro tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Well, I can try talking to him, but it may be better coming from you."  
  
"Me?" Shingo spluttered into his drink. "What, just walk up and tell him 'Your dead co-worker's kind of a ghost because of you, can you forget about him so I can live in peace?'"  
  
"I know you're incapable of tact," Goro retorted, lifting his wine glass again. "But you might consider _why_ he's still able to keep Tsuyoshi bound to this world so long after the fact. Have you asked Tsuyoshi about it?"  
  
Shingo poked at the condensation on his glass. "He didn't really seem to want to talk about it. I'd rather not get him mad again if I can help it."  
  
"Ooh, is he a poltergeist?" Goro perked with interest, then shook his curiosity away. "You know it's not just for your sake. If you're right, then both of them are suffering because of this. An exorcism won't solve that."  
  
Shingo stared into his beer silently. He really, really didn't want to get involved. But he couldn't leave things the way they were-- and not just because he'd have to keep living with Tsuyoshi. Sitting across from Kimura, knowing what was happening...  
  
Goro finished off his wine and stood up from the bar. "Now then, if you'll excuse me, I've got work to do tonight. Although speaking of lingering ghosts, I seem to have picked up my own lately."  
  
Shingo smirked. "Nakai still hanging around?"  
  
"Like a stray cat. Not that I mind cats," Goro added with a smirk of his own. "But they can be quite troublesome until you figure out what they want."  
  
~  
  
"Got any more of these?" Nakai asked, watching yakuza duke it out on the screen in fascination. He was lying on the floor of Goro's living room, head propped on his hands contentedly.  
  
"I'll rent some more tomorrow," Goro replied from the kitchen, turning over the fish he was grilling. "Did you used to watch those kind of movies a lot?"  
  
"Not since I was a kid. Used to love 'em." On the screen, the lead clutched a knife wound, melodramatically rhapsodizing about honor and courage to his devoted comrades. Nakai sat up, leaning back on his arms. "The real thing's not quite the same."  
  
So he _was_ yakuza, then. Or at least, had been. "It's all pachinko and telemarketing scams now, isn't it?"  
  
Nakai snorted. "The movies got the lies and backstabbing right, at least. Some _honor_."  
  
"Is that why you joined? For honor?" There was no reply. Goro looked up from his fish and nearly jumped to see Nakai standing next to him.  
  
"I didn't tell you that." Nakai narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "What're you up to?"  
  
Goro stood his ground. "I want to know who you are."  
  
"Why? So you can exorcise me?" Nakai waved his hand at the grilled fish. "Is all this some kind of-- some kind of _trap_?"  
  
"I could hardly _trick_ you into wanting to be exorcised," Goro replied calmly. The flames under the pan were flickering unsteadily. "But you clearly _do_ have unfinished business that's keeping you here. Don't you think it's time you faced it?"  
  
Nakai stared at him, anger and mistrust still sharp in his eyes. Goro held his gaze, waiting, the sound of the sputtering flames loud in his ears.  
  
The ghost dropped his shoulders suddenly, looking away. "Honor," he said in a low voice. The flames steadied. "I wanted to die with honor."  
  
Goro let out his breath. "Let me help you, then." He caught Nakai's eyes again, giving him a small smile. "I don't even mind doing it for free."  
  
~  
  
Shingo stared across the desk. _Hey, so you know what you said about ghosts the other day..._ No, Kimura would probably think he was pulling some kind of joke. _Guess what? Your dead co-worker's spirit is trapped in his apartment because of you!_ Yeah, _that_ would go over well. He needed to be subtle, to guide the conversation there slowly so the older teacher wouldn't think he was crazy--  
  
"Katori-sensei. Is there some reason you're staring at me?" Kimura glanced up from his grading, one eyebrow raised.  
  
Oops. Shingo quickly looked back down at his own work. "Sorry, I was just, uh, thinking."  
  
Kimura _hmm_ ed, returning to grading. "Thinking?"  
  
"About Tsu-- Kusanagi-sensei." Shingo peeked at the older teacher again. "How close were you guys?"  
  
Kimura didn't look up. "Fairly."  
  
"I mean like, _really_ close?" Crap, what was he saying, he was going to--  
  
Kimura fixed him with a sharp look, his hand pausing. "Is there a reason you want to know?"  
  
Whoops. So much for subtle. "It's nothing, sorry I asked." Shingo focused on his papers, trying to look nonchalant. "None of my business, really."  
  
Kimura was silent for a long moment, as if scrutinizing him. Damn, damn, damn. He'd probably just blown whatever trust Kimura might've had--  
  
"Yes," Kimura said finally, nearly making Shingo jump. "We were very close." He closed his eyes. "I was there when he died."  
  
"I'm sorry," Shingo said quietly. He swallowed, casting about for words. "I guess it must be weird to hear someone in that apartment again. Like he's still there or something."  
  
"Like a ghost?" To his surprise, Kimura smiled. "Don't worry, I don't actually believe in them. I must've spooked you talking about it the other day."  
  
"A little," Shingo lied, laughing nervously. "But, I mean, what if he _had_ come back as a ghost? Just, y'know, in theory."  
  
"He'd probably scold you for bugging the other teachers instead of getting your work done," Kimura told him, rapping the end of his pencil on Shingo's papers. Shingo glanced at the clock-- "Shoot!" Barely half an hour left-- if this nonsense didn't get him fired for pissing off a senior teacher, it was going to be for not doing his _actual_ job. And he still hadn't gotten any closer to telling Kimura the truth...  
  
~  
  
"How's Tanaka-san doing? Did the talk help?" Tsuyoshi blew ghostly steam off the top of his tea. Really, there was no way that could even be possible.  
  
"Seems like it. Now it's Sasamoto who's acting up in class." Shingo poured himself a real cup of tea, leaning against the kitchen counter. "But that's not really anything new. Actually, I had something to ask you about--"  
  
There was a knock on the door. Shingo frowned, and cracked it open. It was Goro.  
  
Shingo undid the chain, letting him in. "What're you doing here? And how'd you get in?"  
  
Goro waved his hand airily, toeing his shoes off and breezing past. He smelled strongly of incense. "Oh, I met your teacher friend at the entrance. Told him I was your boyfriend. But anyway--"  
  
Shingo nearly spilled the second cup of tea he'd gone to pour. "You _what_?"  
  
"Oh, hello Tsuyoshi." Goro sat down at the kotatsu, focusing on the ghost across from him. "How is your host treating you? No fights? Threats with salt and prayer beads?"  
  
Tsuyoshi laughed, taking a sip of tea. "We're getting along just fine. Nakai-kun hasn't been bothering you too much, has he? He always mentions you whenever he comes around."  
  
"That's just what I've come to talk about, actually," Goro said, accepting the cup of tea from Shingo. "I've just made an important discovery!"  
  
"What, that he's an annoying self-absorbed git?" Shingo sat with his own cup of tea. "Sounds familiar, oh dear _boyfriend_ of mine."  
  
"Oh come off it, I've probably just done you a favor." Goro waved his hand again, brushing the matter aside. "No, I've figured out where Nakai's ashes are."  
  
"You did?" Tsuyoshi leaned forward eagerly. "I thought you said he was cremated anonymously."  
  
"He was. But," Goro tapped the side of his forehead. "Even ashes still have a certain connection to the spirit world. I simply visited all the temples close enough to where he died until I sensed the right connection."  
  
"Explains why you reek of incense," Shingo muttered, still feeling vaguely betrayed. He was _not_ looking forward to facing Kimura tomorrow. "So did you get them?"  
  
Goro looked shocked. "I'm not going to steal ashes from a temple! What kind of person do you think I am?"  
  
Shingo raised his eyebrows. "It's that bad?"  
  
"Terrible! I've got a _reputation_ to maintain here," Goro huffed, taking a sip of tea. "That's why I want _you_ to do it."  
  
~  
  
"This," Shingo said as Goro straightened the wrinkles out of his fake police uniform, "is absolutely _not_ what a good teacher does."  
  
"Oh hush, you don't even have to go into a graveyard this time." Goro handed him a folder of what were apparently painstakingly forged court documents. Shingo wondered what on earth Goro did in his spare time. "Just bow and look official, and you should have it in no time."  
  
Shingo sighed, peeking around the corner at the temple down the street. "Remind me why I ever dated you in the first place."  
  
"I'm sure it was my seductive good looks," Goro told him, putting on a pair of expensive sunglasses. "Now get to it, and hurry back!"  
  
Shingo straightened his posture and put on his best bored expression, striding down the street toward the temple. He was just an ordinary policeman on a errand, not about to steal a box of cremated dead person for his exorcist ex-boyfriend. Totally ordinary. Yes.  
  
He bowed and paid his respects at the temple altar, ignoring the itching feeling from the direction of the graveyard, and politely asked the nearest monk to see the head priest.  
  
"The unidentified case?" The priest looked confused. "Yes, of course, but... I'm not sure how it could be of any help to anyone at this point."  
  
"DNA testing," Shingo replied smoothly, making a show of flipping through the documents. "They need to check if certain ribosomes match up with the nucleoproteins found on the endoplasmic reticulators--"  
  
"Yes, yes, I see," the priest said hastily, waving his hand. "Right this way."  
  
Shingo followed him down a long hallway until they reached a plain-looking office. A simple metal shelf lined one wall, filled with overstuffed binders and precariously balanced stacks of yellowed paper; the priest stopped at one end, said a quick prayer, and reached up to pull down a box that was nearly swamped by a sliding stack of folders. Shingo decided he didn't feel nearly as guilty anymore.  
  
"I'm afraid we get rather a lot of business from the area," the priest said, glancing back at the overflowing shelf as he handed over the box. "I'm surprised they weren't able to identify this one, but I suppose those types know how to keep things secret when they want to."  
  
Meaning the yakuza, Shingo assumed, following the priest back down the hall. He'd better hurry back to Goro if there were a lot of them in the area, who knows what might--  
  
He froze as they emerged from the hall. Was that _Sasamoto_?  
  
Sitting on the temple steps with her back turned to the altar-- it was definitely Sasamoto. And-- Shingo stared. What was _Tanaka_ doing here?  
  
"Well, if that's all then, I must be returning to my duties." The priest bowed. "Good luck with the, ah, riboproteins."  
  
"We'll do our best," Shingo replied, trying to keep his voice low. Shit, how was he going to get past them without being recognized? "Thank you very much for your time."  
  
He waited until the priest had disappeared, and pulled his hat low. His students seemed to be deep in conversation-- maybe if he just--  
  
"--think it was the guys he worked for?" Tanaka's voice drifted over as Shingo approached.  
  
"I _know_ it was." Sasamoto, sounding angrier than usual. "They're liars and cheaters, all of them."  
  
Shingo tiptoed closer, clutching the box and folder of documents tightly. He could just pass along one side of them-- _don't look up, don't look up-_ -  
  
"Can't you tell the police? Maybe they could--"  
  
Sasamoto cut Tanaka off with a snort. "The _police_ won't do anything. They've already cremated him so they can pretend it wasn't the yakuza."  
  
"But that's--"  
  
Shingo slipped past, keeping his face tilted away, and strode quickly down the walkway. Now wasn't the time to be a teacher, it would only mess everything up if he stopped--  
  
"There's one now-- I'm sure he'd listen if you just told him the truth--"  
  
"I don't care. I hate the police." Sasamoto's voice seemed to follow Shingo down the walkway, even as it faded into the distance. "I hate my dad. I hate the yakuza. I hate _everyone_ \--"  
  
Shingo broke into a run as soon as he was out of sight. Sasamoto's father-- the yakuza--  
  
He skidded around the corner and nearly crashed into Goro. "Got it!"  
  
Goro took the box almost reverently. "It's him, definitely him." He hugged Shingo with one arm, clutching the box tightly with the other. "You did it!"  
  
"Tell Nakai he owes me one," Shingo said, peering back around the corner. Had Sasamoto's father been killed? That explained the way she'd been acting lately, but-- what on earth was _Tanaka_ doing there?  
  
~  
  
"Killed by yakuza?" If possible, Tsuyoshi turned paler. "Who's looking after her now?"  
  
Shingo yawned, flopping down on his bed. It was nearly midnight. "Dunno. She's old enough they'll prob'ly let her live alone."  
  
"She'd probably try to, too," Tsuyoshi agreed, shaking his head. "But if she knows something about how her father died... Shingo, you should keep an eye on her, just in case."  
  
"Seems like Tanaka's already doing that," Shingo mumbled, tugging the blankets over himself. Sometimes he envied the way Tsuyoshi didn't need to sleep. "Why can't I just have a normal class of students..."  
  
Tsuyoshi laughed quietly. "That's what makes life interesting." He drifted over towards the bedroom door. "That and suddenly finding out your co-worker's preferences when his boyfriend comes to visit."  
  
"Oh god." Shingo pulled the pillow over his head. He'd almost forgotten-- how would Kimura react tomorrow? What should he say? Crap, he probably thought that Shingo had been trying to hit on him earlier... "He's gonna kill me."  
  
"I'm quite sure he won't care," Tsuyoshi assured him. "Now get some sleep, or you really _will_ have a reason to be afraid of him tomorrow."  
  
~  
  
Okay, he's got everything he needs, he doesn't _actually_ have to stop by the teachers' office, if he can just sneak past and go straight to his classroom maybe he won't even have to see Kimura until lunchtime. It'd be nice to set down some of his stuff and grab some coffee, but...  
  
Shingo imagined trying to drink coffee with the older teacher staring across the desks at him, and quickly shook the thought away. He adjusted the stack of essays he was carrying and hurried past the office--  
  
The door swung open, and he nearly ran right smack into Kimura.  
  
"Katori-sensei." The older teacher reached out to steady the essays before they could slide loose. "Heading to class with all that?" He sipped from a mug of heavenly-smelling coffee, falling into step alongside Shingo.  
  
"Uh, yes, we're uh--" Shingo flailed about for an answer. "Starting self-study for college exams."  
  
"Already?" Kimura raised his eyebrows. "They're only first years, you know."  
  
"Can't start too soon," Shingo replied, wishing he could steal a sip of Kimura's coffee. At least then he'd _feel_ prepared to face what was clearly going to be a horrible day. "Um, look, about yesterday..."  
  
"Hm?" Kimura eyed a boy and girl standing a little too close together; they quickly pulled apart. "You're allowed to have whatever visitors you want. I don't care as long as you're quiet."  
  
Shingo flushed, glancing around quickly and leaning in. "He's _not_ my boyfriend."  
  
Kimura smiled in what was probably meant to be a reassuring way. "It's okay, Shingo, I don't care." He gave Shingo's shoulder a thump as they reached his classroom. "He seemed like a nice enough person. Maybe that's what you need to get out more, huh?"  
  
" _Nice_ , my ass," Shingo muttered as Kimura left him in the hallway. He hurried on to his own class. "I'm gonna _kill_ him."  
  
He started attendance, still desperately wishing for a cup of coffee. At least Kimura hadn't been weirded out. Come to think of it, for all he teased Shingo about not getting out enough, Kimura didn't seem to go out much himself, and he'd certainly never heard the older teacher bring anyone home. Maybe-- was it because of--  
  
"Sasamoto Sayaka." There was no answer. Shingo glanced up, startled from his reverie, and caught Tanaka looking back at the empty desk with a worried expression. Where was Sasamoto?  
  
~  
  
Tsuyoshi sipped at his cup of coffee, waiting for the lunchtime shows to start. It didn't actually taste like anything, but there was something comforting about going through the motions of it. You had to get your enjoyment somehow when you couldn't leave your own apartment.  
  
He changed the channel with a blink, but resulting show was just as annoying as the last. Maybe he could convince Shingo to pay for cable--  
  
Nakai popped into the room, stepping through the tv. "Where's Katori?"  
  
Tsuyoshi blinked in surprise, inadvertantly changing the channel again. "He's at work. Is everything okay?" Nakai looked oddly distressed. "Do you want a cup of coffee? I can probably figure out how to make one for you."  
  
Nakai shook his head, pacing the room. "I saw a couple of his students in the area I used to live. They were headed someplace-- dangerous."  
  
"What?" Tsuyoshi jumped up, nearly spilling the ghostly coffee. "Who were they?"  
  
"The one he was following before. Dunno 'bout the other." Nakai tugged at his beanie agitatedly. "You've gotta let Katori know, Goro's out somewhere and I can't jump to places I haven't been yet--"  
  
"Me? But I can't even leave!" Tsuyoshi looked around wildly, trying to think of a way to contact Shingo. He couldn't even lift a pen to write a note, let alone somehow send it across town. If only there some way to send his roommate some kind of signal...  
  
Nakai caught sight of the old landline phone, and his eyes lit up. "Tsuyoshi, you can control electronics, right?"  
  
~  
  
Shingo raced down the hall to the teachers's office. First Sasamoto, and now Tanaka had disappeared between classes...  
  
Kimura looked up from his lunch as Shingo burst into the room. "That hungry?"  
  
"It's Tanaka! He was here this morning, but now he's gone!" Shingo dug his cell phone out of his bag, scrolling through the contacts. He wasn't sure it would be any help, but--  
  
"Hello, this is the Tanaka residence," Mrs. Tanaka answered with pitch-perfect formality.  
  
"Tanaka-san? This is Katori Shingo from Yorin High School. I'm terribly sorry to bother you, but is there a chance that your son is at home?"  
  
"Takahiro? Of course not, I sent him off to school this morning."  
  
Damn. "I'm afraid he didn't show up for third and fourth period. Are you sure he hasn't sent you any kind of message about where he's gone?"  
  
"Third and-- ah, perhaps he wasn't feeling well and decided to come home," Mrs. Tanaka said quickly, covering her surprise. "He does get sick so easily lately--"  
  
"If so, that was almost two hours ago." Shingo gritted his teeth, trying to stay polite. "Could you perhaps give your son a call to see where he is?"  
  
"I assure you, Takahiro must have been feeling unwell-- why, he might have gone to the nurse's office and just forgot to tell someone--"  
  
"Tanaka-san," Shingo snapped. " _I_ assure you that your son is in perfectly good health. If you are so concerned for his well-being, then I suggest you stop covering up for him and start asking him what's wrong yourself!"  
  
He hung up, cutting off Mrs. Tanaka in mid-splutter. Kimura stared at him, chopsticks paused halfway to his mouth.  
  
Shingo grimaced. "I just got myself fired, didn't I."  
  
Kimura set the chopsticks down. "Actually, you sounded a lot like _him_."  
  
Shingo dropped his phone on the desk, rummaging around in his papers. "Must be rubbing off, then. Do we keep records of student cell phones? Sasamoto didn't come in, and I've got a feeling Tanaka might've gone to find her..."  
  
"Only their home phone numbers." Kimura stood, reaching for the student directory at the far end of the desks. "What do you mean, I thought those two were at each other's throats--"  
  
Shingo's cell phone rang, buzzing on the desk. He snatched it up. "Hello?"  
  
A loud burst of static nearly deafened him. He held the phone away from his ear. "Hello?"  
  
No response, just more static and a faint electric hum. Must be a bad connection, he thought, hanging up and checking the number.  
  
Wait. Wasn't that--  
  
The phone rang again. Same number. "Hello?"  
  
More bursts of static and electric humming. "I can't understand what you're trying to say," Shingo said, aware Kimura was looking at him oddly. "It doesn't happen to have something to do with missing students, does it?"  
  
The static buzzed exuberantly. "It is? Do you know where they are?" More static; Shingo grabbed for a pen before realizing it wasn't going to be any use. "Wait, I don't understand you, does anyone else know? Goro?"  
  
No response. Who else could talk to-- "Nakai! Does Nakai know?"  
  
The static nearly took his ear off. "Okay, okay, I'll ask him. Don't worry, I'll find them." Shingo hung up before remembering that Nakai didn't exactly have a cell phone he could call. How was he going to track down a ghost who could wander wherever he wanted? Unless--  
  
Kimura raised an eyebrow. "Mind telling me what's going on?"  
  
"No time, we've got to find Tanaka and Sasamoto," Shingo said, scrolling through his contacts again. "But I know just the person to help us."  
  
Goro picked up on the third ring. "I'm a bit busy at the moment," he said, sounding annoyed.  
  
"Goro! Can you track down where Nakai is? A couple of my students are missing and we think he might know where they are and I think they might be in danger--"  
  
"What? Where's all this coming from? Aren't you at work?"  
  
"I, uh, got a call from my apartment." Shingo glanced over at Kimura nervously. "So I think it might be urgent. Can you tell where Nakai is?"  
  
"I'll try," Goro said, sounding uncertain. "I've never tried searching such a large area before. Hold on."  
  
Shingo heard something that sounded like a match being struck, followed by some kind of distant mumbling. Then, silence.  
  
He waited. Kimura had folded his arms, expression growing suspicious. Hopefully Goro would find Nakai before Kimura gave up on him and decided to call the police.  
  
More silence. Would Goro even be able to find him? Normally the exorcist searched within houses, or at most a small plot of land--  
  
"Found him!" Goro was breathing heavily, as though he'd just sprinted several miles. "Easier than I thought. Okay, write this down--"  
  
~  
  
Shingo pedaled furiously, trying to balance the weight of an extra person. "You didn't _have_ to come, you know," he panted.  
  
"Just making sure you're not a crazy serial killer," Kimura retorted, clutching the back of Shingo's shirt as they rounded a corner. "You still haven't explained how you know where they're going to be, or what on earth that phone call you got was--"  
  
Shouts rang out from the next street over, loud and angry. "I'll tell you later!" Shingo called back, putting on a desperate burst of speed. They veered around the corner to see Sasamoto and Tanaka facing off against a handful of burly, unpleasant-looking thugs. Nakai was standing between them, scowling at the men as if he wanted to take them on himself.  
  
"Run along, kid, _she's_ the one we want, not you."  
  
"Leave her alone! She's got nothing to do with it!"  
  
"Lemme fight them! They killed my dad-- they're all a bunch of _murdering_ \--"  
  
Sasamoto cut off as one of the men grabbed her, locking an arm around her neck. Tanaka lunged forward, trying to pull her away-- the sound of a switchblade flicking open--  
  
Shingo and Kimura leaped from the bicycle, racing toward the scene. A scream rang out--  
  
Which belonged not to Sasamoto, but the man who'd grabbed her. He was staring at Nakai, eyes wide in horror.  
  
" _Let her go_." Nakai advanced on the thugs, murder in his eyes. A line of red snaked across his neck as though by an invisible knife. Slashes ripped through his clothing in answer, blooming angry with dark crimson. " _Let her go or I'll rip your guts out through your throat._ "  
  
Sasamoto bit the man's arm and struggled free; the thug staggered backward, tripping on his equally terrified companions and landing on the pavement. Nakai stretched out a blood-stained hand, red dripping freely down his throat. " _Murderers,_ " he croaked, looming over them. "You _did this to me. I'll show you what it_ feels _like-- I'll pull you into your graves_ myself--"  
  
He reached for the fallen man's neck, mouth curving into a grin--  
  
"Nakai!"  
  
A car screeched to a halt next to Shingo's abandoned bike; Goro flew out of the driver's side, racing toward them. The thugs seemed to come to their senses, scrambling away and taking off in the opposite direction.  
  
Nakai coughed, sinking to his hands and knees on the pavement. Sasamoto and Tanaka stared at him, clutching each other's hands as though not sure if he was really their rescuer or not. Kimura grabbed Shingo's shoulder, leaning on him in shock.  
  
"Nakai." Goro placed a hand on the ghost's back. "It's okay, they're safe."  
  
Nakai sat up, his eyes squeezed shut. The wounds seemed to fade back into his skin, clothes mending as if time had reversed itself. "Why didn't you let me kill them?"  
  
Goro straightened Nakai's beanie with a sad smile. "Would that have given you honor?"  
  
Nakai was quiet. Shingo knelt next to his students. "Are you two alright? They didn't hurt you, did they?"  
  
Tanaka grabbed his arm. "Sensei-- can-- can _you_ see him? He just-- he just _appeared_ \--"  
  
"He was looking out for you," Shingo told him sternly. "Since you two seem to think skipping school to get in a fight with yakuza is a sensible idea."  
  
Nakai cracked open one eye, catching Shingo's gaze before meeting Sasamoto's curious look. "Don't mess with them, kid."  
  
Kimura seemed to finally come out of his shock. "What in _hell_ is going on?" He motioned at Nakai. "Wasn't he just covered in-- I could've sworn I saw--"  
  
Goro looked down at Nakai. "I'll take care of the rest."  
  
Nakai nodded, and eyed Shingo again. "Tell Tsuyoshi he did a good job," he said, and disappeared.  
  
Tanaka squeaked. Sasamoto looked around wildly. "Where'd he go?"  
  
"Did he say _Tsuyoshi_?" Kimura stared at the spot where Nakai had been, then lifted his eyes to Goro. "Who _was_ that? And you-- aren't you Katori's boyfriend?"  
  
" _Ex_ -boyfriend, thank you," Goro replied, straightening his outfit primly. "And professional exorcist for hire, although I'm afraid that _isn't_ what Shingo needs at the moment."  
  
"Exorcist--" Kimura frowned. "Then that man was--"  
  
"He was a ghost?" Sasamoto turned to Tanaka with a grin. "Cool!"  
  
"A--" Kimura looked stunned, as if the words were still sinking in. Then, abruptly, he took off down the pavement and grabbed Shingo's bicycle.  
  
"Kimura!" Shingo staggered up. "Where're you--" Kimura sped away as if he hadn't even heard.  
  
"Well," Goro said mildly. "At least he didn't steal my _car_. I assume you'll all want a ride?"  
  
~  
  
Shingo heard the pounding before he even made it inside the building. He tore up the stairs, the noise growing louder and more desperate--  
  
"Tsuyoshi! I know you're there, _please_ \--"  
  
Kimura was leaning against the door to Room 304, pressing his ear to the wood. "You've got to be there, please just let me _see_ you--"  
  
"He can't."  
  
Kimura whirled. "Shingo! Please, I need to get into your apartment-- Tsuyoshi is--"  
  
"He's a ghost," Shingo finished, stepping toward the older man cautiously. He hadn't expected _this_ strong a reaction. "But he's trapped in there. He can't leave."  
  
"So let _me_ in," Kimura insisted, turning back to the door. " _I'll_ get him out, _I'll_ bring him back--" He raised his fist again.  
  
Shingo dashed forward, catching the older teacher's arm. "Kimura. You can't _bring him back_. You have to let him go or he'll just stay trapped--"  
  
Kimura yanked his arm away, grabbing Shingo's collar. "Don't _you_ tell me that. _You_ weren't there, _you_ didn't have to see him _die_!" His mouth twisted painfully, and he shoved Shingo into the door. "Now you're telling me he's still here but I have to just _forget_ him?"  
  
Shingo looked down, at a loss for words. It was true; he didn't have the right to tell Kimura what to _feel_. He was just a stranger who'd come to take Tsuyoshi's place; _he_ wasn't the one whose words Kimura wanted to hear.  
  
He opened the door. Kimura pushed past him, looking around wildly. "Tsuyoshi! Where are you?"  
  
Shingo followed, catching his breath; Tsuyoshi was standing right in front of the Kimura, looking stricken. "Please, come back to me, just this _once-_ -" Kimura held his hands out desperately, oblivious to the ghost standing before him. Tsuyoshi automatically lifted his hands as though he wanted to embrace the older man-- then stopped, staring at them in horror. "Shingo, I don't know how to-- I can't even _touch_ him--"  
  
"You can't appear?" It was true Tsuyoshi'd never been able to do the things Nakai could, but-- Kimura glanced back at Shingo, grabbing his shoulder. "You can see him? Where is he, _please_ \--"  
  
Shingo looked from one to the other, the only link between the living and the dead. It was Tsuyoshi that Kimura needed. But if Tsuyoshi couldn't appear-- what was he supposed to do _now_?  
  
"Shingo," Tsuyoshi said softly, drifting towards him. "I think-- I know a way to talk to him-- if you'll let me--"  
  
"Talk to--" Shingo met Tsuyoshi's eyes and suddenly understood. "Okay."  
  
\--and it was like being filled with electricity, cold and hot and sharp all at once--  
  
_A smile across desks. Going out to eat, staggering home together drunk but warm with laughter. The doctor's expression, the world falling apart, a desperate kiss. The world falls apart some more. But then he's there next to you, he understands now, he's willing to try for you-- if only you'd known what it would do to him-- and he's there next to you on the last day, he carries you home from work, lays you too light and frail on the bed you once shared and holds you close, as if you might not die if he just held on tightly enough--_  
  
" _Takuya_ \--" Tsuyoshi said through Shingo, and threw his arms around the older man's shoulders. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry I had to leave you like that--" He buried his face in Kimura's neck, hugging him tightly. "I'm sorry I couldn't stay with you. But-- you promised me you'd be okay--"  
  
"Tsuyoshi?" Kimura hesitated, then wrapped his arms around Shingo with sudden strength. " _Tsuyoshi_." He bent his head, resting it against Shingo's. "I know. I promised. I--" His voice shook. "I thought I was ready." He tightened his arms, as if trying to hide the faint tremble in his grip.  
  
"I'm sorry." Tsuyoshi stroked the back of Kimura's neck soothingly. "I should've realized how hard it would be."  
  
"I'm sorry I wasn't stronger," Kimura murmured. "But-- you could stay with me-- I could switch rooms with Shingo--"  
  
"Takuya," Tsuyoshi said gently. "I wish I could come back to you. But I can't. I have to move on." His hand stilled on Kimura's neck. "You have to let me move on."  
  
Kimura swallowed hard, clutching Shingo's back. "I don't-- I don't want to _forget_ you."  
  
"You don't have to _forget_ ," Tsuyoshi said. "Just accept."  
  
Kimura ducked his head, warmth spreading suddenly on Shingo's shoulder. "Okay," he said finally, his voice thick. "I'll-- I'll try."  
  
He breathed in deeply, a long, steadying breath that seemed to fill all the space between them. "Thank you," he whispered, so faint Shingo could barely hear it. "Thank you for loving me." And there was something else after that, words so soft that maybe only Tsuyoshi could hear them, as though they were meant for him and him alone--  
  
And then Kimura breathed out, and with it Shingo felt himself grow dizzy, suddenly light and empty as everything that was Tsuyoshi left him. He knew, without looking around, that there would be no one in his apartment anymore. The ghost in Room 304 had moved on.  
  
Shingo swayed, clutching Kimura for balance as he came back to himself. Kimura lifted his head. "He's-- gone?"  
  
Shingo nodded, and realized his face was still pressed into the older teacher's neck. He started to pull away, but Kimura didn't move. "Can I-- just for a--"  
  
"Yeah." Shingo let Kimura hold him a little longer, blinking back the dampness in the own eyes. Tsuyoshi was gone. Everything they'd shared-- the late-night chats, the fights over teaching, the quiet moments of watching television over tea-- everything about the ghost was gone now. Everything-- except for one tiny spark that hadn't been there before, a warmth left behind for the man in his arms that might, in time, kindle into something more--  
  
Kimura wiped his sleeve across his face and pulled away with a wry smile. "Guess we should get back to work, huh?"  
  
Shingo wiped his own eyes, giving the older man a lop-sided grin. "I'll give you a ride this time."  
  
~  
  
They arrived back at the school to find Sasamoto and Tanaka waiting outside with Goro. The exorcist had apparently been regaling them with stories of his work; Sasamoto looked fascinated while Tanaka looked terrified. They were also, Shingo noticed with interest, holding hands quite tightly.  
  
Goro took one look at Shingo and Kimura, and smiled softly. "I see it was a success, then."  
  
Shingo nodded, glancing back as Kimura dismounted. "With an unexpected side effect."  
  
"Hm?" Kimura held the bike steady for Shingo as he climbed off.  
  
"Nothing." Shingo turned to his students. "As for you two, it's about time you headed off to class."  
  
Sasamoto pouted. "But Inagaki-san is _way_ more interesting."  
  
" _Too_ interesting." Shingo corrected, motioning his students toward the gate. "No more ghost stories. Off you go--"  
  
"Takahiro!" A woman came running out of the school entrance, purse flying behind her. "Where have you _been_ , young man! I was searching all over for you!"  
  
Tanaka blinked in surprise. "Mom? What're you doing here?"  
  
"Don't give me that!" Mrs. Tanaka swatted the back of her son's head. "You made everyone worry about you!"  
  
"I was--" Tanaka hesitated, glancing at Shingo. "I was saving Sayaka from the yakuza. Her dad got killed so she's all alone now."  
  
"From the--" Mrs. Tanaka paled slightly, and then took in the two students' joined hands. She appeared to make a great effort to regain her composure. "I see. Well then, I expect you to introduce her _properly_ \--" She caught Shingo's eye. "-- _after_ school. And don't think this justifies skipping classes!"  
  
Shingo bit back a smile, putting on as stern a face as possible. "You heard her. Back to class with you. I expect to see both of you there in final period."  
  
Tanaka looked stunned for a moment, staring between Shingo and his mother, and then broke into a grin. "Yes, sir!"  
  
The two students bowed and ran off toward the school entrance, chattering excitedly. Mrs. Tanaka turned to Shingo and Kimura. "Thank you for looking after my son. I, ah, assume that was the truth he was telling?"  
  
"The gist of it, anyway," Kimura muttered, glancing sideways at Goro.  
  
"You have a very brave son, Tanaka-san." Shingo bowed deeply. "And an honest one, at that. I'm very proud to have been his teacher."  
  
"Huh?" Kimura grabbed Shingo's elbow. "Shingo--"  
  
"I should _hope_ so," Mrs. Tanaka sniffed. "And I should expect you'll do fine job turning him into a proper young man." She bowed formally and turned, heels clacking as she strode away.  
  
Shingo exchanged a look with Kimura. "Guess I'm not fired after all?" he said with a grin.  
  
"Not _yet_ , anyway," Kimura retorted, pushing Shingo by the shoulders towards the school. "But if you make us both late for class I might just consider doing it _myself_."  
  
  
Epilogue:  
  
Goro slowly prepared the ink, grinding the stick carefully on the smooth, dark stone. "Are you ready?"  
  
Nakai knelt across from him. A plain wooden box rested between them, candle flickering to one side. "Yeah." He stared at the box, reaching one hesitant finger out to brush the top. "Bet you'll be glad to finally get rid of me."  
  
"Quite," Goro agreed, though it didn't quite reach the rest of him. "I'm looking forward to being able to do my job in peace again."  
  
"Hmph. I should stay just to haunt you some more. Be better company than most of what you keep."  
  
Goro glanced up; Nakai was watching him, eyes seeming to catch the candlelight with a dark glitter.  
  
"You'd probably scare all my clients away," he retorted, quickly dropping his gaze. He chose a stick of incense, placing it in the holder next to the candle. "Shall I begin?"  
  
Nakai looked down at the box again, and nodded.  
  
Goro lit the incense and picked up his brush, dipping it carefully in the ink and bringing it down on the scroll before him. The first character, the second-- it was hard to clear his mind this time but the motions came like second nature, years of practice engrained in his fingers. The prayers of purity and heart, filling the paper as the incense grew thick. The character for _soul_ , the character for _world_ \-- and the last one, dividing between them in bold strokes-- _release_. He pressed his hand into the ink, the spell filling him to the tips of his fingers, and looked up--  
  
\--and Nakai was there in front of him, leaning in close, eyes glittering through incense as he pressed his cheek to the hand Goro had lifted.  
  
The spell took hold and Goro followed, the world falling away as they sped into darkness, and for a moment, both of them caught between material and immaterial, they could almost feel the warmth of each other's presence. The dreamlike impression of fingers entwined, of breath that no longer existed-- and of lips meeting in a desperate kiss, trying to say everything in the last fleeting instant before they were seperated forever--  
  
The next world approached. Nakai broke away, moving toward it, and it was everything Goro could do not to follow. He couldn't go with, not yet. Nakai wouldn't have wanted that.  
  
The incense had fallen completely by the time he returned to himself. The candle guttered low, light fading to a dim gold-- and then it extinguished itself with a soft hiss, leaving only a trail of smoke in the dark.  
  
Goro blinked up at the ceiling. He'd woken with his eyes full of tears. "Not unhonored," he murmured quietly, and smiled into the empty darkness. "And not unmourned."  
  
~  
  
"Why did we have to come _here_?" Shingo grumbled, pulling his jacket around himself tightly. "It's already getting _dark_ out."  
  
"Because it's a graveyard," Goro told him, carefully navigating the winding stairs with the box in his arms. "Which is generally where you bury people. And we need it be dark so no one will see what we're doing."  
  
"Worried?" Kimura nudged Shingo's arm. "I'll protect you if anything tries to attack."  
  
Shingo snorted. "I think _Goro'd_ be more help than you. Are you gonna throw a bunch of flowers at them?"  
  
Kimura adjusted the bouquets he was carrying-- three for Tsuyoshi, five for Nakai-- "If necessary."  
  
"Anything can be useful if you really _mean_ it," Goro observed, climbing the last set of stairs. "Now, if you'd give me a hand with the stones..."  
  
They carefully shifted the polished granite, revealing the small space underneath. A single ceramic urn already rested in the chamber.  
  
"You're sure you don't mind?" Shingo looked over at Kimura; the older man's expression was wistful, but resigned.  
  
"Tsuyoshi wouldn't have minded," Kimura replied, watching as Goro lowered the box in next to the urn. "So I don't either."  
  
"And there's plenty of room left for more," Goro said cheerfully, sitting back and dusting his hands off. "We'll have no problem joining them, as long as no one decides to get fancy with their urn."  
  
Shingo elbowed Kimura. "You see why I stopped dating him."  
  
Goro ignored the comment, producing a small bottle of water and three sticks of incense. "If you could reseal the crypt, please."  
  
They shifted the stones back into place, and Goro poured the water over the grave, washing the dust away to a dark gleam. He began reciting something under his breath, lighting the incense and motioning for each of them to place a stick in the holder in turn. Shingo and Kimura arranged the flowers in the vases on either side, and then stood back as Goro gently propped a small carved stone tablet next to Tsuyoshi's name on the marker. The grave now had two occupants, finally resting in the peace they deserved.  
  
"Now then," Goro said, clapping his hands purposefully. "At this point I believe ceremony calls for getting uproariously drunk."  
  
Shingo and Kimura glanced at each other as they turned to head down the stairs. "I think I know the perfect place," Kimura answered with smirk. "How d'you feel about grilled skewers?"  
  
"Skewers?" Goro sounded skeptical. "Do they have any decent wines?"  
  
"You'll thank us once you've tasted it," Shingo told him, reaching for Kimura's shoulder as he navigated down the uneven steps. He glanced back one last time, at the incense spiraling up into the air behind them. _You did a good job, both of you. Thank you._  
  
Kimura caught his elbow, steadying him in the dark. "But no getting _too_ uproariously drunk. Tomorrow's a school day, after all."  
  
Shingo laughed, turning back to the path ahead. "Hey now, if I remember correctly it was _you_ who ordered that fourth round last time..."  
  
Life, it seemed, had a lot of surprises in store for him. But now, Shingo decided, he was just a little more ready to face them.


End file.
